But I've noticed a general overall malaise with social media, and with Facebook in general. I think part of the boredom is that we all spend too much time posting about us, about our families, our jobs, our causes, our favorite whatevers.

Stacy Creel writes: "Modeling reading, sharing books with students, and giving students opportunities to share their choices are instrumental components of encouraging reading. In the case of this research, self-selection had a significant effect on whether or not students enjoyed the books they read for school. Since most students have access to classroom and school libraries, it is important that these collections appeal to their reading interests and offer a variety of resources to support self-selection."

Self-selection for reading is so critical in middle school. One of those children in the photo above was in my library yesterday, and was amazed that he could check out Unbroken for a reading project. "We just want you to read," his teacher and I told him. He was certain he could only read chapter books, after having that drummed into him in elementary school. Here's to a newly enthusiastic reader of narrative non-fiction! (And now that he knows what it's called, he'll have a much easier time finding what he likes in my library, a class library, or public library!)

Self-selection for reading is so critical in middle school. One of those children in the photo above was in my library yesterday, and was amazed that he could check out Unbroken for a reading project. "We just want you to read," his teacher and I told him. He was certain he could only read chapter books, after having that drummed into him in elementary school. Here's to a newly enthusiastic reader of narrative non-fiction! (And now that he knows what it's called, he'll have a much easier time finding what he likes in my library, a class library, or public library!)

In this article the writer talks about how students do better reading books they actually want to read instead of the ones they are assigned. Throughout the article the writer provides a lot of data that would be useful in a research topic like this one. I also agree with the writer about student reading what they want to read will make reading more fun and enjoyable. The writer’s audience would be school districts all over the country because students do not like getting assigned boring books to read. It ruins the purpose of reading if you do not want to read something you do not like. The writer’s main point would be that students should be allowed to read whatever they want so they can enjoy it. With this being said there would be more students reading as well. The website does not seem that credible but the information in this article can be useful for an essay.

Self-selection for reading is so critical in middle school. One of those children in the photo above was in my library yesterday, and was amazed that he could check out Unbroken for a reading project. "We just want you to read," his teacher and I told him. He was certain he could only read chapter books, after having that drummed into him in elementary school. Here's to a newly enthusiastic reader of narrative non-fiction! (And now that he knows what it's called, he'll have a much easier time finding what he likes in my library, a class library, or public library!)

6th Grade Speed Dating Genres

We're speed dating this week. Several 6th grade teachers want their students to explore different fiction genres. I decided to make some personal ads (pictured above) for different genres or subgenres. I already had resources lists in Destiny for these genres, so it made it easy. We have eleven tables, which we'll load with books and an ad. Students will have to rotate through at least 4 tables. They'll be discussing genres in class, but I made an exit ticket so I can track which are the most popular (I still have one more book order to place.) If you're interested, here's a link to the ads, and a link to the exit ticket. The ads document has the titles listed separately at the end, to make it easier for my aides to cut them out! :)

Using infographics for teaching allows the student to learn and understand better as they are just slides and using our own creations on how to present it. It is an effective way to teach students using infographics and it is simple and doesn't require as much time typing. I agree with what the author said about keeping it simple and easy and the students benefits from it. In the future I am sure most of the items will be controlled using technology.

Diana Rendina writes: "In the book Get Active: Reimagining Learning Spaces for Student Success, the authors identify six types of active learning spaces that are essential for creating an engaging learning environment for students. While this research (and this book) are not specifically focused on school libraries, we are the ideal place in our schools to encompass all six types of learning spaces in one location. We are the learning hubs of our schools after all. :)"

We're busy constructing our timeline to do some low-cost library remodeling/reconfiguring this summer. We're hoping to relocate our large group presentation space to a darker area of the library so everyone can SEE what's on the screen! That will give us room for collaborative and small group workspace. Of course, extensive weeding is the first step so we can free up some floor space!

We're busy constructing our timeline to do some low-cost library remodeling/reconfiguring this summer. We're hoping to relocate our large group presentation space to a darker area of the library so everyone can SEE what's on the screen! That will give us room for collaborative and small group workspace. Of course, extensive weeding is the first step so we can free up some floor space!

We're busy constructing our timeline to do some low-cost library remodeling/reconfiguring this summer. We're hoping to relocate our large group presentation space to a darker area of the library so everyone can SEE what's on the screen! That will give us room for collaborative and small group workspace. Of course, extensive weeding is the first step so we can free up some floor space!

6th Grade Speed Dating Genres

We're speed dating this week. Several 6th grade teachers want their students to explore different fiction genres. I decided to make some personal ads (pictured above) for different genres or subgenres. I already had resources lists in Destiny for these genres, so it made it easy. We have eleven tables, which we'll load with books and an ad. Students will have to rotate through at least 4 tables. They'll be discussing genres in class, but I made an exit ticket so I can track which are the most popular (I still have one more book order to place.) If you're interested, here's a link to the ads, and a link to the exit ticket. The ads document has the titles listed separately at the end, to make it easier for my aides to cut them out! :)

Over the past couple of years we have reviewed a number of very good web tools and mobile apps you can use with your kids and students to get them engaged in creative drawing projects. We spent sometime today going through our archive and curated for you the list below. Whether you use iPad, Android, Chromebooks or simply the web, you will definitely find something that works for you from this chart. Also, some of these applications, especially the web-based ones, do support 3D drawing, others can be used for doodling and sketching. We invite you to check them out and share with us if you have other suggestions.

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